Academy

Academy André Lhote

Teaching always occupied a large place in André Lhote's career. From 1915-1916, he taught in various academies until 1925, the year of the creation of the Académie André Lhote at 18, rue d'Odessa, near to the Montparnasse station. This continued until his death.

A considerable number of painters from over the world came to listen to the teacher whose teaching skills, according to the art historien, René Huyghe, were comparable to «a singing siren» André Lhote refused to consider himself a teacher but rather a painter looking for the universal laws of painting, with the help of other painters: the «Invariants plastiques». Aurélie Nemours (1910-2005) who had been his student, confirmed «I learned everything that can be taught concerning painting from André Lhote's academy» (RMN 2003, Andre Lhote's exhibition catalogue).

André Lhote continued to teach and encourage painters. His records show persisting links between the master and the students: grateful letters full of friendship, with details artist to artist, proving the influence he had in the formation of artists, whilst respecting their freedom of creativity.

From 1926, with the discovery of Mirmande in the Drôme, André Lhote used to encourage his students to spend the summer there in order to work together on the study of the countryside, setting up what he referred to as «The Fields Academy». Artists from every country came, contributing to an international reputation of a village that had previously almost been completely abandoned. In 1938, the same thing happened in Gordes, in the Vaucluse, as well as in 1948 to La Cadière d'Azur in the Var.

Thanks to his reputation in teaching André Lhote was invited in 1950 and 1951 to Egypt to teach and give conferences. Later, in 1952, he was invited to form an academy in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Exhibitions in which students and their teacher exhibited their works. Paris 1926.

In London 1927

From the beginning, in 1937, the Galerie Pittoresque (Simone Lhote's Gallery) permanently exhibited the students' work.

Amongst the students who attended the Academy Lhote (approximately 1200 artists listed today) figure: Tamara de Lempicka in1920, Hans Hartung and Anna Bergman in 1929, Tarsila do Amaral in 1922, Wu Guanzhong in 1947, Aurelie Nemours in 1941, Australian painters, Anne Dangard, Grace Crowley and Dorritt Black in 1928, Egyptians Effat Naghi and Mohamed Naghi in the thirties, Ibere Camargo, Louise Bourgeois, the Canadian Jean Philippe Dallaire, the Swedish Georg Pauli, Bengt Lindstrom, Pierrette Bloch, the singer Serge Gainsbourg, the writer Claude Simon, Gérard Vuillamy, Americans Emlen Etting, Josephine Crawford.

Many photographers also worked on the art of pictorial composition with André Lhote, amongst whom figure: Henri Cartier-Bresson, Dora Maar, Rogi André, Florence Henri, William Klein.